What is GSTR 3B? Requirement, Time and Provisions of Form

Table of Contents

1. Introduction

2. About Form GSTR-3B

3. Requirement of furnishing Form GSTR-3B

4. Other provisions relating to Form GSTR-3B

1. Introduction

Under the GST law, every registered person (other than specified persons) is required to furnish the details of inward and outward supplies of goods or services or both, input tax credit availed, tax payable, tax paid, etc. during the tax period electronically over the GSTN portal. These details are required to be furnished periodically (monthly or quarterly) in a return referred to as Form GSTR 3B.

This document provides all the provisions relating to Form GSTR 3B including the manner of its furnishing under the GST Legislation.

2. About Form GSTR 3B

The Form GSTR 3B is a self-declared consolidated summary return of inward and outward supplies which is required to be furnished by a registered person electronically on the GSTN Portal. The provisions relating to furnishing of Form GSTR 3B as given under the GST legislation are discussed in this document in the below manner:

a) Requirements of furnishing Form GSTR 3B: This part discusses the GST provisions requiring the persons to furnish Form GSTR 3B, manner and due dates of furnishing Form GSTR 3B, restrictions in furnishing Form GSTR 3B, the concept of monthly tax payments in Form GST PMT-06, etc.

b) Other provisions relating to Form GSTR 3B: The other provisions relating to furnishing of Form GSTR 3B such as revision/rectification, recovery of tax on transactions declared in GSTR-1 but not in GSTR 3B, furnishing of Nil return through SMS, the applicability of late fee for delay in furnishing Form GSTR 3B, etc. are discussed in this para.

Each of the above points is discussed in detail in the below-mentioned paragraphs.

3. Requirement of furnishing Form GSTR 3B

The registered persons who are required to furnish Form GSTR 3B including its timelines and manner of furnishing as given under the GST law are discussed in the below-mentioned paragraphs.

3.1 Registered persons required to file Form GSTR 3B

The GST law provides[ Section 39(1) read along with Rule 61(1) of the CGST Act] that every registered person is required to furnish the details of inward and outward supplies of goods or services or both, input tax credit availed, tax payable, tax paid and such other particulars for every calendar month or part thereof. However, the given requirement is not applicable to the following persons:

a) Input Service Distributor (‘ISD’)
b) Non-resident taxable person (‘NRTP’)
c) Person registered under the Composition scheme[ Section 10 of CGST Act]
d) TDS Deductor[ Section 51 of CGST Act]
e) TCS Collector[ Section 52 of CGST Act]
f) Registered person for providing the OIDAR services[ Section 14 of IGST Act]

(i) Form GSTR 3B: Nil Details

The GST law requires[ Section 39(8) of CGST Act] the above registered persons to furnish the details of inward and outward supplies in Form GSTR 3B for every month/quarter ‘whether or not’ any supplies of goods or services or both have been made during such tax period. Therefore, Form GSTR 3B would be required to be furnished even if there is no detail of inward and outward supply during the relevant tax period.

3.2 Time limit for filing of Form GSTR 3B

In terms of the GST law, Form GSTR 3B is required[ Rule 61(1) of CGST Rules] to be furnished for each month/part of the month on or before the 20th day of the month succeeding the relevant month. The tax due shall also be paid to the Government on the same date.

(i) Time limit for filing Form GSTR 3B by person opted for QRMP Scheme

To reduce the compliance burden on the small taxpayers, with effect from January 01, 2021, the Government has introduced[ Proviso to Section 39(1) of CGST Act read along with Rule 61 and Notification No. 82/2020 – Central Tax dated 10-11-2020 ] the scheme of Quarterly Return Monthly Payment (QRMP) for the taxpayers having aggregate turnover up to Rs. 5 Corers in the preceding financial year. In this scheme, the statement of outward supply and the return is required to be filed on a quarterly basis but tax is required to be paid on a monthly basis.

Notably, the registered person under the QRMP Scheme would be required[ Rule 61(3) of the CGST Rules] to pay the tax due in each of the first two months of the quarter by depositing the due amount in Form GST PMT-06 by the 25th day of next month. The amount so deposited [Rule 61(4) of the CGST Rules] is debited from the electronic cash ledger while filing the return for the said quarter in Form GSTR 3B. The due date of furnishing Form GSTR 3B in this case would either be 22nd or 24th (based on the state in which person is registered) of the month succeeding such quarter.

(ii) Summary of time limit for furnishing Form GSTR 3B and payment of tax

The due dates for furnishing [Rule 61(1) of the CGST Rules] of Form GSTR 3B and payment of tax are summarized as follows:

(iii) Power to extend due date of return to Commissioner

The GST law has empowered [Section 39(6) of CGST Act read along with First and Second Proviso to Rule 61(3)] the Commissioner to extend the time limit for furnishing the details in Form GSTR 3B and depositing the tax payment in Form GST PMT-06. The law provides that any extension of the time limit notified by the Commissioner of SGST or Commissioner of UTGST shall be deemed to be notified by the Commissioner of CGST. A similar provision exists under the respective State GST Laws. Therefore, separate notifications for such extensions are not required.

3.3 Manner of discharging of GST liabilities

The law requires[ Rule 61(2) of the CGST Rules] that the liability towards tax, interest, penalty, fees, or any other amount payable under the GST Act shall be discharged by debiting the electronic cash ledger or electronic credit ledger while furnishing Form GSTR 3B. The details of such payment in the required to be reported in Form GSTR 3B.

3.4 Restrictions in furnishing Form GSTR 3B

There are few scenarios under the GST law that restrict the registered person from furnishing the Form GSTR 3B. These scenarios are discussed in the below-mentioned paragraphs.

(i) Furnishing of Form GSTR 3B for previous tax period is mandatory

The registered taxpayer is not [Section 39(10) of the CGST Act] allowed to furnish return in Form GSTR 3B unless all of the previous tax periods Form GSTR 3B returns have not been filed. Therefore, Form GSTR 3B of any month/quarter would not be allowed where there is pending Form GSTR 3B to be furnished for any previous tax period.

The Finance Act, 2022 has further made an amendment [Section 105(d) of the Finance Act, 2022 effective from 01-10-2022 vide Notification No. 18/2022, Dated 28-09-2022] in the above provision to provide an exception wherein the Government, by way of a notification, may allow a registered person or a class of registered persons to furnish Form GSTR 3B of any tax period even if such persons have not furnished Form GSTR 3B for one or more previous tax periods. The above relaxation would be based on the recommendations of the GST Council and subject to conditions and restrictions specified in the notification.

(ii) Filing of Form GSTR-1 for same tax period is mandatory for filing Form GSTR 3B

The Finance Act 2022 has made an amendment [Section 105(d) of the Finance Act, 2022 effective from 01-10-2022 vide Notification No. 18/2022, Dated 28-09-2022] to provide a new restriction relating to furnishing of Form GSTR 3B for a tax period. It has been provided that Form GSTR 3B would not be allowed to be furnished for a tax period if the Form GSTR-1 for the said tax period has not been furnished.

The above provision also provides that the Government may allow a registered person or a class of registered persons to furnish Form GSTR 3B of any tax period even if such persons have not furnished Form GSTR-1 for the said tax period It would be allowed by way of notification on the recommendations of the GST Council and subject to conditions and restrictions specified in the notification.

4. Other provisions relating to Form GSTR 3B

The other provisions relating to furnishing of Form GSTR 3B as given under the GST law are discussed in detail in the below-mentioned paragraphs.

4.1 Revision/Rectification of Form GSTR 3B

Under the GST law, there is no provision for revision of Form GSTR 3B. The GST law provides [Section 39(9) of the CGST Act as amended by Section 105(c) of the Finance Act, 2022 effective from 01-10-2022 vide Notification No. 18/2022, Dated 28-09-2022] that in respect of discovery of any omission or incorrect particulars after furnishing the return (other than as a result of scrutiny, audit, inspection, or enforcement activity by the tax authorities), the registered person can rectify such omission or incorrect particulars subject to payment of interest by the earliest[ Proviso to Section 39(9) of the CGST Act] of the following dates:

a) 30th November following the end of financial year to which such details pertain, or

b) Furnishing of the relevant Annual Return

As per above, one would need to ensure that the errors or omissions relating to a financial year corrected latest by November 30 of the next financial year. In other words, such correction can be made in the Form GSTR 3B filed on or before November 30.

4.2 Fee for late furnishing of Form GSTR 3B

Under the GST law [Section 47 of the CGST Act], where the registered person files Form GSTR 3B after the due date, he would be liable to pay a late fee for such late filing. The fees in the given case would be Rs. 200 per day (i.e. Rs. 100 under the CGST Act and Rs. 100 under the respective SGST Act). However, the Government has provided relaxation and the late fees[ Notification 76/2018 dated 31st December, 2018] for GSTR 3B shall be Rs. 50 per day (i.e. Rs. 25 under the CGST Act and Rs. 25 under the respective SGST Act) subject to maximum of limit of:

Moreover, the late fees for Nil return shall be Rs. 20 per day (i.e. Rs. 10 under the CGST Act and Rs. 10 under the respective SGST Act) subject to maximum of limit of Rs. 500.

4.3 Interest on delayed payment of tax

Where a registered person is liable to pay [Section 50 of CGST Act] tax to the Government under the GST laws but fails to pay such tax within the due date, he shall be liable to pay interest at the specified rate for the period for which the tax remains unpaid. The interest shall be calculated from the day succeeding the day on which such tax was due to be paid.

4.4 Recovery of Tax in respect of transaction merely declared in Form GSTR-1

The Finance Act 2021 has amended [Clause 114 of the Finance Act, 2021 – Effective from January 01, 2022] the provision relating to recovery of tax [Section 75 of the CGST Act] to define[ Explanation to Section 75(12)] the meaning of the term self-assessed tax. This term has been defined to include the tax payable in respect of outward supplies furnished in Form GSTR-1, but not included in Form GSTR 3B. Therefore, if a person has furnished details of outward supplies in Form GSTR-1 but has not discharged the tax liability i.e., not furnished such details of outward supplies in its Form GSTR 3B, then the same would qualify as self-assessed tax and the department may initiate the recovery proceedings[ Under Section 79 of the CGST Act] for such transaction. The amendment ensures that tax declared in Form GSTR 1 must actually be paid by the supplier.

1. Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana or Andhra Pradesh or the Union territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep.
2. Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya, Assam, West Bengal, Jharkhand or Odisha or the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Chandigarh and Delhi.

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